Life on Lockdown in Barcelona
It’s not every day you find yourself reporting from the confines of your apartment by decree.
Whilst this trend is slowly sweeping across the globe with countries such as Spain, Italy and France now officially on lockdown, CRISP. Mag reports from the centre of Barcelona on what could be expected for the U.K. in a matter of days.
The Prime Minister’s lockdown announcement came early on Saturday evening, but we were blissfully unaware celebrating a friend’s birthday from the privacy of our own apartment over dinner and drinks. Having put our phones away to escape the constant bombardment of daunting news updates, we believed that measurements would be put into place come Monday to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in Spain.
It was still fairly early in the night when we heard a loud thud at our front door that shocked us all into silence. Upon opening the door we discovered two policemen who told us that we were ‘gathering illegally’ as it was past 9pm and that ‘our beloved Prime Minister’ had declared a state of alarm due to which everyone (all five of our guests) was required to leave and go to the confines of their own homes immediately.
As our guests left, it felt as though this was an unnecessary authoritarian approach by the police which we have seen an increase as the days of lockdown have gone on. Not only do the police now question your motives for leaving your apartment (you are only to leave for emergencies, food and pharmacy trips), but they are using drones, cars and megaphones to scare people off the streets whilst also implementing fines (with up to a year in prison), and taping off public spaces like beaches and parks. Today they also announced that they will be deploying military officials across the country.
With the closure of most businesses and public spaces, it has felt emptier than usual. Being forced to stick to our barrios (Barcelona is divided into different areas called ‘barrios’), means that there has not been the same erratic supermarket and stockpiling behaviour we have seen broadcasted from other areas of the world. People must shop at the places around them instead.
Contrary to the above, these extreme government measures are not reflected in the mood of the people. Yesterday we managed to walk up to the park for an hour or so where people walk their dogs, and to the local shops in our area without any problems. This sort of mental calmness is crucial in times of crisis.
Residents here are taking precaution and sensible measures, many wear masks in the street. Those who are unwell are staying at home, and those who are well are ensuring that some kind of normality still goes on each day.
The biggest concern is for the many small businesses around the city who rely on footfall in order to survive. They have been closed for almost 4 days now with no clear sign of when they will be permitted to re-open. The minister of transport, José Luis Ábalos, has announced today that closures may go on for more than the originally suggested 15 days in order to tackle the outbreak. Despite this update, there has been no clear information as to whether these businesses will see some kind of financial compensation for their forced closures.
In a country of around 47 million people, Madrid has been worst hit by the outbreak with many social media influencers trending the hashtag #yomequedoencasa to encourage their followers to stay at home. With sources telling us that they have already lost their jobs and face serious financial hardships, they feel there is a real lack of sympathy and compensation for those who simply cannot just ‘stay at home’ in order to survive.
Experiencing a lockdown first hand is not as dramatic as it is perceived to be on social media. We applaud every day at 8pm to give thanks to the health workers who help to save lives every single day, especially during this outbreak. There is no need to instil fear in countries who have not implemented a lockdown, the U.K. government is working with leading scientists and health officials who are following the outbreak closely and monitoring the country to do what is best for everyone.
Remember that if you still can; support your local business, turn off your notifications and practice mindfulness (whether that is going to yoga, listening to a podcast), spend time outside, and live in the present.
Take care to wash your hands regularly, stay at home if you feel unwell and follow all other government guidelines and updates for COVID-19.
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